The Eiffel Tower

The world famous Eiffel Tower is located on the Champ de Mars Paris. This is one of the most famous tourist attractions in the world. You can see the top of the spectacular structure from all over Paris because it rises at 300 meters tall and weighs in excess of 10,000 tons. For over forty years the structure was the tallest in the world.

History of the Eiffel Tower

The Eiffel Tower was built for the World Exhibition in 1889, held in celebration of the French Revolution in 1789. It was designed by Gustave Eiffel, known from his revolutionary bridge building techniques and for creating the great viaduct at Garabit in 1884. He also constructed the iron framework for the Statue of Liberty.

The structure took more than two years to complete. Each one of the about 12,000 iron pieces was designed separately to give them exactly the shape needed. All pieces were prefabricated and fit together using nearly seven million nails.

Originally the Eiffel Tower was meant to be a temporary construction only for the exhibit. In 1909 it was almost torn down, but city officials decided to keep it recognizing its value as a radiotelegraph station. The top may be reached by using lifts and stairs. The tower is mostly composed of triangulated sections and this allowed the engineers to build the tower so high.

The cost of the Eiffel Tower

The Eiffel Tower’s cost was more than 3 million dollars with most of the money being provided by Eiffel himself and the French state. After the first year of opening so much money had been raised from people visiting the tower that the cost of construction was covered and Eiffel became rich.

Now one of the most recognizable structures on the planet, the Eiffel Tower underwent a major facelift in 1986 and is repainted every seven years. It welcomes more visitors than any other paid monument in the world—an estimated 7 million people per year. More than 500 employees are responsible for its daily operations, working in its restaurants, manning its elevators, ensuring its security and directing the crowds flocking the tower’s platforms to enjoy panoramic views of the amazing Paris.